No matter how much content a game offers, it will inevitably run dry at some point.
Superego Online. As its name suggests, this is a free-spirited RPG game packed with all sorts of adventures that satisfy your very ego.
I am a so-called “veteran” user of this game, currently struggling with a severe content drought.
I’ve been looking forward to this for at least five years, only to have devoured it all within two. But what can I do? The game’s structure encouraged competition in the first place. I merely enjoyed the game as the developers intended.
The words of these so-called demon players, starved for entertainment and oblivious to even the option of seeking something refreshingly unique, are all quite similar. Especially when there are no decent alternatives like user maps.
Self-sufficiency through mischief.
By grasping the cutscene mechanics, I snapped random, quirky photos with NPCs and toyed with the ghost sister I should have been dodging, smacking her backside as I passed by.
A thirsty man digs his own well. Just like I’m about to plop into death by a tutorial mob right now.
Scarecrow. Level 1. A monster covered in rags with a head and body also made of rags, with a tiny sickle jammed right on top. From its very appearance, it radiates the majesty of the weakest monster in the game.
After the tutorial is over, you won’t see it again, and with the influx of newbies slowly dwindling down, it’s practically a forgotten relic. But soon, it shall rise to unfathomable heights and become the harbinger of the #1 spot on the server rankings.
At one point, it starred in a rather clickbait-y post about a “blonde beauty getting stomped without even putting up a fight, moaning pitifully.”
But even that soon fell into obscurity, eclipsed by the popularity of the damage-measuring scarecrow positioned in the guild building. There was a tsunami of fan art depicting various interpretations, and it was absolute chaos!
Reflecting on the past while casting my skill.
The guild’s aforementioned scarecrow was designed not only to function as a debuff for devastating damage calculation but, strangely enough, it received buffs as well!
The HP of my character and the scarecrow targeted by the skill merged into one, then split in half and divided between us.
With this, he becomes the most durable tutorial scarecrow in the game.
Hey, I’ve set up for a rainbow reflection! Now, all that’s left is to cast one final skill.
With my heartbeat pounding in my fingers, I pressed the last shortcut button, not an ounce of doubt sneaking in about my deep immersion in the moment.
Done! The skill ‘Pain Sharing’—that uses up my HP to inflict the same damage on my opponent—was unleashed through the scarecrow.
Both our HPs dwindle at the same rate. It might look like a twisted suicide pact, but the scarecrow had one more HP than me, making it a curious oddity.
If things continue this way, the scarecrow will barely cling to life, leaving me dead in its wake, and the game will deem it the one who killed me!
Just like that. The swordmaster “Ai,” who had never tasted defeat since his inception, was brought down by the weakest scarecrow.
This sacrifice shall not be in vain! Through my narrative, it will garner manifold praises!
“Hidden achievement? So, you’re saying even the management had figured this one out?”
I dashed to take a screenshot.
I’d been recording the whole time, but this reflexive action kicked in upon seeing “1 person achieved.”
“The number of achievement unlocks is calculated through server integration, right? Maybe…..?”
So this implies it is the sole achievement on the entire server, the first in the world too!
The words of the accomplishment aren’t the issue. The real surprise is the angle of silver.
Broadcasting channels will likely try all sorts of methods to replicate this achievement. If they succeed, it will surely spread to foreign communities!
Even in the forums where talking smack and recognizing names are borderline sins, it would likely allow me to play celeb status for at least a month!
“Oh! So they even reward the first achiever, huh?”
What will they give me? A special mount that hasn’t even been implemented in the game yet?
Even a shabby commemorative hat would make a fine trophy to show off!
In an instant, a huge, cryptic sentence shattered all my expectations.
These words weren’t displayed on a screen—they appeared right before my eyes!
“What? R-reincarnated?”
Brrrrrrt—
The monitor emitted a light so bright, it should’ve been impossible with its specs!
Realizing something had gone horribly wrong was much too late; I hastily stood from my chair, but the radiant glow had already seized the entire room.
“Ugh, eeeek!!”
Before I could even grasp the doorknob, I was sucked into the light without any chance to process it.
The last thing I uttered in this world was nothing but a futile scream!
—
“Uh, umm…”
An alien sky greeted me. As if everything that just happened had been a lie, the wind braided around me, tickling my face from all strains.
The scent of fresh grass grew stronger as my consciousness returned. More than anything, it seemed the rags were the primary culprits here.
“What, rags…?”
I pushed myself up against the ground and instinctively brushed my head. The material beneath my fingers felt like rags.
“Huh?”
As I directed my gaze to the falling debris brushing past my eyes, I noticed something spilling out from within me as well.
Rags!
“Huh? Huh-huh…?”
With no mirror or even the faintest trace of a phone, I lunged toward the stream nearby that caught my eye.
Flipping, crawling, and rolling in that minor distance. Anyone who saw this would probably think I’d lost my mind or was possessed by something.
“Ugh…ugh.”
All the way through, I recognized it deep in my mind. The circumstantial evidence was utterly overwhelming.
Yet the body I inhabit—a ragged mess crafted from fabric—was only satisfied when it finally caught a glimpse of its reflection in the water.
“This, this is…?”
Eyes, nose, and mouth that looked crudely scribbled on as if by an artist with a shaky hand—what a wonder it was how it managed to see and hear!
A frame crafted from sticks!
A glove dangled where a hand should be!
This was now my own appearance!
“No matter how you look at it, I’m just a scarecrow…”
In denial, I glanced around—everything was a flower garden! It was a quintessential image of the beginner zone in Superego Online, known as Shijakumaur!
Next, as my gaze moved back to where I woke, the items my character wore when it died lay scattered like breadcrumbs.
At this point, it was undeniably clear. I had to concede.
I was engulfed in the game. I had turned into a tutorial scarecrow!
“Why on earth is this happening…?”
I barely achieved one accomplishment in the game, and suddenly I’m possessed? How does that even make sense?
And it had to be by this useless scarecrow, of all things. If you were going to possess me, at least make it a human!
[MP: 5]
[STR: 1]
[VIT: 1]
I opened my status window just on the off chance… and it was as miserable as I expected. The numbers matched perfectly with those in the settings book.
I should be grateful that I now have legs and can move at all!
With this, I was effectively constrained to play this game as a wholly different character than the one before, without any strategies unveiled…
‘Why does it sound fun just hearing about it?’
An ironic chuckle escaped me. Even in this state, my hardcore gamer spirit was evidently intact.
Having flipped my perspective, I felt tension ooze away, and a sense of resolve surged.
‘Right, I’m good at this game. Even as a mere scarecrow, I’ll be just fine. I’ll bulk up and find a way back to my original world!’
Even if there is no way.
In this world I know better than anyone and adore more than anything, I would surely live a happier life than before!
“First, let’s hit farming.”
I set my course straight for the drop zone.
Upon inspection, it seemed only the equipment dropped, leaving everything else aside. These were all temporarily donned for testing purposes; they were rather unremarkable.
“Considering I’ll be restriction-locked due to job limits upon leveling up, perhaps this is better? Trading restrictions make this a headache….”
Amidst this tidal wave of unwearable items, just then, I noticed the sole unrestricted equipment: a black robe.
It seemed far better suited for concealing my identity than those other items that were currently out of reach.
“I… no keys, no inventory?”
[Equipment][Consumables][Quests][Cash][Others]
┗ ┛
The inventory window responded to my desire, revealing an empty yet almost comforting 50-slot basic UI.
All my remaining things were stored here. I’d have to see how it goes later… potentially using or selling them depending on the situation.
“Next is…”
Has it interpreted my previous actions as some type of tutorial process?
Right after my task was completed, the nickname-setting window popped up. The original systems likely still function almost entirely intact!
“Ai. That’s what I’ll go with.”
Lv.1 – Tutorial Scarecrow
There was no need to hesitate or worry.
I had snatched a two-letter rare nickname by rushing through the tutorial on opening day! It’s the name that would label me as the strongest in this virtual world.
“The name of the area and its features remain unchanged. That’s good.”
Fwip~
I yanked the sickle out of my head.
Destination: the wheat field.
“Well then, shall we get going?”
It was time to grow stronger, the scarecrow way!
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